Constitution Day in Spain (06/12)

Constitution Day in Spain (Spanish. Día de la Constitución) — is a public holiday and an additional day off in the country.

Compared to other European countries, in Spain the new Constitution was adopted relatively recently. A country where dictatorship reigned for almost 40 years (1936—1975), after the death of Francisco Franco, began the process of transition to a parliamentary monarchy — of the form of government that exists in Spain to this day. An integral part of this procedure was the drafting and adoption of the Constitution.

On December 15, 1976, a law on political reform in Spain was passed, ending the political system of Francoism and giving rise to the activities of the Constituent Cortes, which ended with the adoption of a new Constitution.

On December 6, 1978, the Spanish people adopted the national Constitution by general referendum. Of the almost 27 million Spaniards who had the right to vote at that time, about 18 million voted, of which one and a half million voted against, and almost 700 thousand ballots were declared invalid. The victory of democratic values allowed us to open a new page in Spanish history.

The 1978 Constitution, positively adopted by the majority of the Spanish population, is largely similar to the Constitutions of other Western countries. It proclaims fundamental human rights, public freedoms, the principle of separation of powers, popular sovereignty and declares Spain a social, democratic, rule-of-law state, with a political system in the form of a parliamentary monarchy. The document also granted broad rights to the autonomous regions of the country.

Since 1978, the Constitution has been amended only once to give citizens of new EU member states living in Spain the right to vote and be elected in local elections.

On the occasion of the holiday, the National Congress of Deputies is organizing an open day so that anyone can visit the Lower House of the Spanish Parliament. Although few Spaniards participate in the celebration of Constitution Day, the vast majority of Spaniards are proud of the country's Constitution.

2127